The DW Letters
by Crossover Dreamer
Summary: Set three to four years in the future, this story is a series of gap fillers in the format of The Beatrice Letters, by Lemony Snicket. D.W. is like Beatrice, Brain is like Lemony, they are like each other. AU. Human heads. Christian content.
1. The Finished Fear

**Important: **In this story, some of the characters, such as Dora Winifred Read, Alan "Brain" Powers, and other _Arthur _characters are Christians. There are elements used by _Arthur's _writers and Lemony Snicket that I admire, but I didn't want to compromise my beliefs. Also, the characters are human, and the story begins when D.W. is going into the third grade and Brain is going into the seventh grade. The letters are in chronological order.

Dedication: This story is dedicated to Swanwhite2 with whom I have a lot in common in the realm of taste in media, anyone who likes the D.W./Brain running gags, and anyone who finds _Arthur _to be as mysterious as Lemony Snicket.

AP to DWR #1: The Finished Fear

Camp Meadowcroak, 7th and 8th Grade Boys, Day 1

Dear D.W.,

Arthur told me that your family was going on vacation during the weeks of 7th and 8th Grade Boys' Camp. So I thought that this would be a good opportunity to write letters to you—after all, our houses are very close to each other. Where are you planning on going? If possible, please write me at least once during your vacation.

This year of camp has been different from my previous years at camp in many ways. For example, I just found out that the 7th through 12th graders take turns cleaning the restrooms and washing dishes. If I had to choose between washing dishes and eating camp food, I would choose washing dishes (ha-ha). Speaking of food, this is the first year that Camp Meadowcroak has had a snack shack. Can you guess what was the first food or beverage that I ordered? A Sarah Orange Soda, of course!

Here's the highlight of the day: ten of us campers—including me, Binky Barnes, George Nordgren, and Alex Stewart (Buster is spending the entire summer with his dad and Los Viejeros)—had an unofficial canoe race, and George and I won (isn't it strange how often George wins?). Water sports are so much fun! And to think that I've spent all that time worried over nothing (except perhaps a bacterial contamination in the pools of water parks, but that's beside the point.) My point is that that conversation you and Vicita Molina had during her 4th birthday at the Ice Cream Shop has changed my outlook on the necessity of the skill of swimming.

Well, that's all for now. Tell Arthur I said "hi."

Your Friend,

Alan Powers

(A/N: The full names that I decided to give to the two unnamed students in Mr. Ratburn's class are Jenny James and Alex Stewart. The first names, I think were the names given to those characters in the Arthur Chapter Books. I decided on the last names "James" and "Stewart" after the late James Stewart who played Elwood P. Dowd in the 1950 movie _Harvey. _I'm pretty sure that Elwood City was named after Elwood P. Dowd because Elwood's friend Harvey was a 6-foot tall anthropomorphic rabbit—both of the unnamed students are rabbits.)


	2. The Recommended Recreation

A/N: Another thing that makes _The D.W. Letters_ alternate universe is that all the geographical locations are real, unless otherwise noticed. I made the Reads live in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania (Ellwood with two "l's") instead of the show _Arthur's_ Elwood City (with one "l"). The names of the buildings in Ellwood City will remain fictitious unless otherwise noticed.

DWR to AP #1: The Recommended Recreation

Vacation Day 1, The Windy City

Dear Alan,

I received your letter the day before we left for our vacation. We're going to spend the next two weeks traveling around the country. Originally, Dad wanted to go as far west as Yellowstone National Park, but then Mom said that she wanted to see the Pacific Ocean and that she was most interested in visiting the city of San Francisco, and Dad was quickly persuaded.

Our first stop was Cleveland, Ohio, where my dad's sister Bonnie and her son George live. Do you remember meeting them at Arthur's 8th birthday party? Well, I told him that you were into science and comic books, and he thought that it would be a good idea if you two got together someday to trade comics. We could only stay for an hour.

By about 2:00 pm, we rested in a marshland about 10 miles east of Toledo called the Magee Marsh Wildlife Area. They don't call it that for nothing! It has hundreds of species of birds and mammals and I was actually able to spot a lot of them. The first time I ever went camping, the only animals I could find were a deer, a spider, and a dead fish. I'm glad that you recommended that I watch "The Great Outdoors Channel." I can see why you like camping.

We're spending the night at a hotel in Chicago, Illinois. For dinner we had a classic Chicago-style pizza, which has a deep-dish crust, cheese on the bottom, and sauce on the top. I had pepperoni on mine with—what else?—an orange soda!

It probably would have been better if I wrote to you when I got to San Francisco, but I thought that so much happened today that I wanted to write to you right away. Mom brought her notebook computer, so I was wondering if you could please ask the counselors if they could let you email me? Arthur will keep a journal of all the things that will we're doing on our trip. See you in two weeks!

Your friend,

D.W. Read

A/N: Wow, that D.W. sure has a lot to say! Even in her letters! How did she get to be so good at writing so fast? Three guesses how...


	3. The Double Deception

AP to DWR #2: The Double-Deception

To:

From:

Subject: D.W. and Our Two-Week Adventures

Greetings from Camp Meadowcroak! Well, I did indeed get the counselors' permission to email you. It's the seventh day of 7th and 8th Grade Boys' Camp, and so far I have made quite a few friends. There's Ray Evans, whom I met going on a hike, Howard Ocean, with whom I have played several games of table tennis, and Wesley Fuller, who got three holes-in-one playing miniature golf.

It sounds like you've had a good time finding all the animals you did at Magee Marsh. I've had some interesting encounters with animals here myself. One day when Howard, Wesley and I were about to practice archery, we noticed that there were swarms of mosquitoes flying near the targets. We headed back to our cabins to put on mosquito repellant, but when we returned, the mosquitoes tried to bite us anyway. So we decided to not do archery after all. Looks like the frogs have plenty of snacks available.

An even stranger thing that happened here which involves animals was that on the hike that many campers went on including me and Ray. Along the trail, we found, believe it or not, a stray pony! We had no idea who the owner is, so some counselors brought it over to Camp Horsewater so that it would be kept safe in their stable. You didn't by any chance get the pony you always wanted and lose it, did you? (LOL)

Remember that friends can send emails to Camp Meadowcroak's campers through the camp's website. When you have something to write, make sure that you don't be manipulative with your family. Like the time that you sabotaged Arthur's game of Virtual Goose, just so that he would go camping with me. I wasn't such a good example staying silent about what I truly thought about you joining the Parade Float Club. We must put God first, then family, then friends.

I am excited to learn more about your vacation. If all that you mentioned in your letter happened on the first day, imagine what the rest of your vacation would be like.

TTYL

Alan Powers

A/N: This chapter took me quite a while for me to edit. I wanted to make sure that it wasn't too long and that it was believable as an email from the one character to the other. I hope that this chapter was most satisfactory. Feel free to review.

Oh, yes, and Ray, Howard, and Wesley belong to me.


	4. The Lost List

DWR to AP #2: The Lost List

To:

From:

Subject: Alan and our two-week adventures

Greetings from San Francisco, CA! It's Day 7 of the Read Family Vacation, and here's a summary of where we have been since my previous letter:

Day 2: Chicago, IL; Iowa City, IA; Omaha, NE

Day 3: Omaha, NE; North Platte, NE; Cheyenne, WY

Day 4: Cheyenne, WY; Yellowstone National Park (I didn't know that only a little of the national park was in Montana and Idaho until I looked at a map that day)

Day 5: Yellowstone National Park; Twin Falls, ID; Winnemucca, NV (Arthur helped me make sure I spelled "Winnemucca" correctly)

Day 6: Winnemucca, NV; San Francisco, CA

There was so much to do in San Francisco, it was hard for us to decide. But Mom and Dad came up with a solution. During the afternoon of Day 6, we visited the Exploratorium. Everyone had different favorite exhibits. Arthur liked the Eye Tracker of "Seeing," I liked the Talking While Listening of "Listen," and Kate liked the Colored Rooms of "Seeing" and the Out Quiet Yourself of "Listening."

The following day, we browsed some stores at Pier 39. At one of the stores (Animal Country) I've found animal stickers that are just like the ones you gave me for my sixth birthday. I didn't know how you knew that I wanted farm animal and ocean animal stickers, but then Arthur told me that you got the hint from one of the drafts of my Christmas lists that I asked Arthur to write, and that it was related to something different altogether. Then we walked around and had lunch in Chinatown. Afterwards we relaxed at Yerba Buena Gardens. (Yerba Buena is Spanish for "Good Grass.") We spent an hour on the Rooftop of Yerba Buena Gardens where there were plenty of activities for kids. Even though we were only on the Rooftop for an hour, we were exhausted.

I am currently trying to memorize some Bible verses: 2 Corinthians 5:17 and Philippians 3:13-14. I have found these verses very encouraging for what I have been dealing with lately.

As soon as we get back, Arthur will fill you in on the details of Days 2 through 5.

TTFN

D.W. Read

A/N: The exhibits I mentioned in this chapter are actual exhibits at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. I know that on the _Arthur_ episode "Prove It" Arthur, D.W., Brain, and Mrs. Powers visited a different exploratorium, so in this universe, they visited the Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts, which is in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.


	5. The Porcine Pals

A/N: I am not an expert at grammar, I only know basic rules. So it's possible for me to make grammatical errors in a letter that is supposed to be written by a genius.

AP to DWR #3: The Porcine Pals

The City of Brotherly Love

Dear D.W.,

I'm really sorry that I'm not going to be back at my house for the first few days after you returned from your vacation, but I have a good excuse. You see, Grandpa Alba, my mother's father had a medical emergency. He had a heart attack. Grandma Alba called our house while I was still at camp. When my mom gave me the bad news, she told me that we were going straight to Philadelphia, lots of thoughts raced through my mind: "Is he going to leave us so soon? I know that he's 80, but Grandma Alba is only 65, I'm 13, and their youngest grandchild, Ben Solada is only 3. Grandpa Powers just died two years ago. Am I ready for this?" Then I realized that I was being anxious, so then I prayed that the Lord would comfort me and give me the right words for any evangelism opportunities. When we got there, The doctor told us he'd be okay.

You may be wondering why Grandma and Grandpa Alba are 15 years apart. I'll explain Irene Romano was a unique student. At 14, she decided to enroll in a classical school. In Irene's fourth year, she had a teacher whom she admired very much and the teacher admired her as well. Irina told her parents about how great a teacher he was, and so the Romanos invited him over for dinner. Irene's parents were as pleased with the teacher as Irene was. The teacher's name was Giacomo Alba. (I could go on forever about my family history, but I think it would be best not to bore you—or waste postage—and save my reminiscences for published works of over two hundred pages in length.)

Here, however, is something that I think you will find very interesting. We both thought it was uncanny that we both had companions that were porcine, that is, "pig-like." We thought it was incomprehensible that your drawings of Snooter look very much like my Plato (the main differences being yours is imaginary and winged and mine is stuffed and clothed in a toga, which was often mistken for a dress). But when my cousins Anita and Claudia Alba and I went through our aunt Amelia Solada's old photographs that she considered submitting to past contests, there was one particular photo that caught my attention. It was taken eight years ago and was a portrait of a grandmother and granddaughter...namely a Mrs. Thora Read and you. Is it possible that you saw me with Plato at the park eight years ago? One year before I met Arthur? If so, you certainly had a vivid imagination for a six-month-old.

We're planning on staying over at Grandma and Grandpa Alba's house for a week. I'll call you to keep you updated. Pray that God will give me peace and joy.

Your friend,

Alan Powers

A/N: In this chapter, Brain's relatives were all my idea. Snooter and Plato, on the other hand were the creation of _Arthur's writers._ I thought you should know the reason behind me choosing Brain's mother's maiden name to be "Alba." If you're thinking that it has something to do with the dramedy _M*A*S*H_, the sitcom _Growing Pains_, and possibly the board game _SCRABBLE_ (which is made by Milton Bradley, a division of Hasbro), you're right on all accounts. I did this as a solution to the letdown of the show's revelation of Brain's last name. I was right in that there was wordplay connected to the nickname, but I was so far off because it would have something to do with the anatomy of the brain, and not a common phrase.


End file.
